I seem to remember a report on CNN about a neighborhood that was built to new codes in California, and how it fared during a wildfire event. The combination of steel rooves, and fire resistant landscaping close to the suburb left the neighborhood undamaged, while a nearby suburb built to old codes that didn't account for wildfires was wiped out.

BC Forest Service has been asking for wildlands urban interface projects to be implimented for the last 8 or so years. Just as they asked for proscribed burns to protect urban interface areas. The province stated it was the responsibility of the municipal districts, not theirs, to come up with the funding, if they were concerned. Which is scarey given the pine beetle situation.

As such, this government will mainly spend on reaction and not proactive endeavours, though if there are no wildfires in the area, the IA and Unit crews sometimes work to remove ladder fuels and standing dead in interface areas which is on Crown Land. This gpvernment does not seem to get the fact that proactive saves tax payer's money and protects communities. The costs of bird dogs, water bombers and helicopter bucketing are huge per hour, and that is not even considering the on the ground crews, both machine and human, and the emergency medical response units.

Cost sharing of wildfires used to occur in tenured timber lots, between the government and private enterprises holding the tenure, but I am not sure if this is still occuring after the changes made in 2004 and 2005. But I believe they only have to pay now, if they were the ones who directly or indirectly caused the wildfire, though I am not 100% sure of this and stand to be corrected if not the case. Private citizens who start wildfires can also be forced to pay for the costs to fight the fire.

BC forest fire fighters are pretty much the best in the world and they go all over NA to fight fires. All provincially employed crews are very well trained and have been for decades. IA and Unit crews can be money making concerns for the government coffers and their working on committed interface projects, would cut into that potential. EFF's could be used for interface projects if there was a desire for governments to actually be pro-active.

The Forest Service has sent out diagrams with commentary, to private residences on how to manage their forest and home property interface areas, in this area. However, unless you have the money to pay fallers 200-400 dollars an hour, or put out similar for machine that falls, or have the skill to do it yourself, you are out of luck. And if the property next to you has trees to close for safety, but is not owned by you, you have no recourse either, if the owner denies you permission to cut to make your home safe.

That might include a cousin of mind who lives in the Shannon Lake area which is being influenced by the Rose Valley fire - it look like both of these fires are the result of human activity - not necesaarily intentional - so people please be

Looks like good news for some of the evacutees from the Glen Rosa fire - about 6000 people can return home tomorrow starting at 8:00AM - they will have to stay on alert - also both highway 97 and 97C will reopen.

While not out of the woods yet - no pun intended it looks like the fire crews - municipal and forestry have done a good job getting a good handle on the fire and have knocked it down - the weather also cooperated with light winds.

Since evacuation orders affecting more than 11-thousand residents of West Kelowna have been lifted, police have confirmed fewer than ten cases of homes being burglarized.

RCMP Corporal Dan Moskaluk says that's fewer than normal, "It would not be out of the ordinary to receive that many complaints in the normal situation during any given summer day."

He says police are also investigating the possibility criminals disguised as volunteers are telling people on evacuation alert to leave their homes, "It wouldn't be beyond somebody to do that. To try and trick somebody out of their residence a little sooner or earlier just to make it easier for them to victimize them."

Moskaluk says residents can call the local Emergency Operation Centre to confirm they're on any list for evacuation orders."

I am not sure what exactly your point is, as 1 act of human carelessness, does much less damage than thousands of lightening strikes across a broad area that is ripe for a huge burn because of human carelessness...

FINTRY (NEWS1130) - While people in West Kelowna are now back in their homes, more than 2,000 people living near Fintry--approximately 35 miles north of West Kelowna--have been ordered out of their homes due to the rapidly expanding Terrace Mountain forest fire. An evacuation order was issued this morning.

The 2,200 people living in an around Fintry were ordered to leave, and are registering at a reception centre in Vernon. The Terrace Mountain fire has grown to 4,000 hectares in size and is burning aggressively. Containment figures are being recalculated to account for the fire doubling in size in less than 24 hours."

I live in Vernon, and work where I can actually see the fire. Today the blaze got hit by a serious downpour, which should allow firefighters to make serious progress. They'll need it with the forecast next week, sunny with highs in the mid-30s.

35 degrees in Vancouver is going to be unusually hot.
Shocking B.C. weather has just begun

Wild lightning storms to give way to record high temperatures this week

Weekend storms and scorching temperatures sent two adults to hospital due to a lightning strike, washed out concerts and sporting events and started 100 forest fires across B.C.

More weather-related chaos is in store, with temperatures expected to soar to 35 degrees by mid-week in Metro Vancouver and even higher inland.

The storms and heat are a result of a twist in weather patterns, said meteorologist Mark Madryga, with strong systems pushing heat and storms in from the eastern interior instead of more moderate weather coming in from the west.

Usually, lightning storms that come from the east are too weak to make it past the Fraser Valley, said Madryga.

Environment Canada recorded more than 1,100 lightning strikes in the Lower Mainland, with a total of 12,000 throughout B.C. on Saturday night, said Madryga, adding such storms only happen once every three years.

One of the bolts hit four people camping at Golden Ears park on Saturday night.

The lightning bolt first struck a tree, then disabled two vehicles, and finally injured two children and two adults at Gold Creek Campground in the park, Ridge Meadows RCMP said in a press release.

A 36-year-old man and a 35-year-old woman who live in Burnaby were taken to Ridge Meadows Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The two children, Surrey residents aged eight and seven, stayed with adults at the park.

The bolts also sparked more than 100 new forest fires throughout the province on Saturday, said provincial fire information officer Alyson Couch. More forest fires are expected as the mercury rises. Hot, dry weather mixed with scattered thunderstorms is the perfect recipe for new blazes.

Ontario is shifting it's water bombers and crews out to B.C. I don't think they'll be too busy here this summer.

Makes me wonder if Australia might be asked to lend a hand, as our crews and planes have gone down there in our winter to help them in a pinch. In fact, I've often wondered if it would make any sense if Canada and Australia developed a combined water bomber fleet, and shared costs.

Water bombers and crews are expensive, and there's little point in having them idle in either country over the winters.

I just googled it, and it seems that you are probably right, they don't have the range-- except for one type, an ancient WWII era sea plane converted to water bombing, the Martin Mars. From a message board, it seems they might have the range, and I think one from Canada did go to Australia at one point. Maybe this is what I am remembering.

OR, I am confusing that Canada sells water bombers to other countries.

Nothing will silence these deniers. They will go to their deaths saying global warming is a myth. Unfortunately they are going to bring us along with them to an early death.
World will warm faster than predicted in next five years, study warns

New estimate based on the forthcoming upturn in solar activity and El Niño southern oscillation cycles is expected to silence global warming sceptics